Happy New Year!

We are staying low key tonight. Just hanging around the house with our 22 year old son. We just finished playing Risk (which unfortunately, I was the first to go out - I'm the pink armies) and getting ready to watch Ratatouille. We may even get to bed before midnight! We want to be up early tomorrow to be ready for the Cotton Bowl. University of Missouri is playing University of Arkansas. Go MIZZOU! Some friends are having us over to brunch and then watch the 10:30 a.m. game -- boy that is sure early for New Year's Day!

Hope you have a wonderful 2008. I'm looking forward to this year and besides the normal exercise more, eat less, pray and read your bible more resolutions, I'm going to work at being the best Grandma ever!

100th Post!

How time flies! I need to look back over all my entries and remind myself what has been going on in my life!

For my 100th post - I give you 100 facts about me!

100. My spiritual gifts are service and exhortation.
99. I MUST check my e-mail every day.
98. I have a borderline obsession with yard sales.
97. I lived in Indiana for 10 years.
96. I wanted to be an OB nurse after I had my first child.
95. I have osteoporosis but am medicating, so hopefully my bones will get better.
94. My favorite Christmas movie is White Christmas.
93. I cannot stand the taste of artificial sweeteners.
92. I volunteer at a local hospital in the OB Unit.
91. I was very thin until about 30!
90. I have auburn colored hair but it is quickly fading to brown.
89. I pray before I go to sleep but sometimes fall asleep doing so.
88. I have an unhealthy addiction to the TV.
87. My favorite color is yellow.
86. I really like my ipod. Listening to Eagles, Carpenters, Beatles, Third Day and more
85. Is the year my second child was born.
84. I love the smell of coffee, but I don't drink it.
83. My Bath and Body Works scent is Japanese Cherry Blossom.
82. Is the year my first child was born.
81. My favorite number is 7.
80. Is the year I married.
79. The only diet soda I like is Orange Sunkist. Diet Pepsi isn't too bad.
78. Is the year I graduated High School!
77. I couldn't remember my husband's name when we first met.
76. I make lists for everything.
75. My wedding color scheme was rainbow with an emphasis on yellow.
74. I am VERY family oriented. I keep in touch with 3rd cousins and great aunts.
73. I cry easily. Sad movies, touching stories, injustices, meanness, etc.
72. I hate snakes.
71. I worked half a day my Senior year of High School.
70. I am a planner.
69. I DVR Oprah, the View, The Closer, Survivor, and the Medium.
68. I have four labs. Belle, Cocoa, Luke and Scout.
67. I walked down the aisle to “Time in a Bottle.”
66. I love sewing, crocheting and cross stitch.
65. I love the smell of gasoline.
64. I love warm weather. I could live in Hawaii for sure.
63. I was the "Most Likely to Succeed" in 8th grade.
62. I worked at two steel mills in Northwest Indiana.
61. I drive a Honda Accord.
60. Once in awhile, I watch Lifetime or Hallmark TV all day.
59. Was the year I was born.
58. I love to nap on Sunday afternoons.
57. I learned how to whistle watching the Bridge On the River Kwai and Andy Griffith.
56. I played volleyball in 7th-8th but wasn't very good!
55. Red Lobster was my first date with my husband. I dislike fish.
54. I like watching chic-flick movies when my husband is out of town.
53. I read CNN, MSNBC and Fox daily.
52. I smoked a cigarette at church camp. Never smoked again.
51. I hate being late.
50. I love to sleep in. But it is not much past 8 a.m. anymore.
49. My favorite author is Jodi Picoult.
48. I love listening to the Eagles!
47. I have a hard time going to bed. I'm a night person.
46. I love watching sport teams play that I root for.
45. I enjoy making gifts for people.
44. My husband makes me laugh. He's my best friend.
43. I love to rock a baby.
42. I miss my grandparents.
41. I was on the yearbook staff in High School.
40. I talk too much and need to listen more.
39. I like to eat chocolate chips and cookie dough.
38. I've been in every state but two (Delaware and Alaska).
37. I enjoy baking.
36. I would like to reconnect with childhood friends.
35. I hold my nose when swimming underwater!
34. My dream is to travel abroad.
33. I stink at playing Trivia Pursuit! I only get the Entertainment questions.
32. I enjoy playing cards and other games with my family and friends.
31. My memory is not what it used to be.
30. M&M's are my weakness.
29. I love to take pictures. My digital camera is great!
28. I took easy classes in High School because I was afraid of not getting A's.
27. I attended a country elementary school.
26. I'm so very proud of my children.
25. I love to go antiquing with my friends and daughter.
24. I made concert choir my Freshman year of High School.
23. Nichole Nordeman is my favorite Christian singer.
22. My feelings get hurt easily.
21. I love doing crafts. Seeing something get completed is a good thing!
20. Is how old I was when I got married.
19. Dirty Dancing is my favorite movie. No one puts Baby in the Corner!
18. I use to bite my nails but now they are long and polished.
17. I love chocolate!
16. I sang "All I Want for Christmas is my Two Front Teeth" at a school program.
15. I've been married 27 years. Met my husband in college.
14. I only went one year to college. But it was a great year!
13. I am a peacemaker.
12. I am the least competitive person in my family.
11. I'm a St. Louis Cardinal fan.
10. I am the youngest child of three. The only girl.
9. I'm working on coming up with 100 goals for my life and only have 43.
8. I like sending cards to people but don't do it enough.
7. I fell and hit a coffee table when young and have a scar on my forehead.
6. Is how old I was when I was saved and baptized.
5. I was a cheerleader in 7th-8th grade!
4. I hate it when people are not respectful.
3. I'm excited about being Grandma!
2. Pregnancy was easy for me.
1. I love technology! New gadgets.

Merry Christmas

I hope everyone had a very Merry Christmas. Ours was busy, like many of yours, but once all the planning and preparing was done, we could sit down and enjoy the festivities.

We had our immediate family's Christmas on the Saturday before due to schedules. We traveled to our daughter's home because she is 9 months pregnant and not traveling. We had a great time, great food and fun presents. I also was able to help with getting the baby's nursery ready for her -- that was fun. One of the gifts I received was an Ipod Nano. I'm pretty excited about playing with this new toy. I've already put more than 300 songs on it and looking for more CDs to add to it. My son also got me a set of speakers so I won't have to use the earbuds all of the time.

My daughter and SIL bought me a beautiful necklace with my initial on it. I've been wanting one like this for some time. The initials are similar to the picture on the left. I don't have a picture of the actual necklace. They also gave me silver ice bucket that is very chic.

Monday, Christmas Eve, we hosted my husband's family at our house. We take turns around the family and this year was us. We had 13 family members and served brisket and turkey along with mashed potatoes and then family members brought vegetables, salad, appetizers and goodies. I prepared a punch that was very popular. I used 1 quart cranberry juice, 1 c. sugar, 2 c. orange juice, 1 c. pineapple juice, 3/4 c. lemon juice, and 2 c. ginger ale. I substituted the sugar with Splenda and only added to taste.

For the place settings, I sewed a Christmas stocking for the silverware and a quilt square for table decoration using the same material. For the nameplate I scanned a piece of the material and then created a name tag in Word. Everyone really liked how all three coordinated.

Now it is time to rest for a week or so before the grandbaby comes. Our daughter just found out that she will need to have a C-Section because the baby is breech, so our calendars are marked for January 9.

This has been a rather long post, but before I sign off, I wanted to introduce a new blog. My daughter and SIL started a new blog entitled Continue the Conversation. Check it out -- they list many ways where you can give back to the community and the world.

Christmas Carol Trivia

Check out this trivia quiz on Christmas Carols. Have fun!

http://www.chicagotribune.com/carolquiz,0,4932856.triviaquiz

Prayer

I read this recently, probably on someone's blog - but just cannot remember where (so it goes these days!). Great prayer.

Please Lord bring me closer to you during this special season of your son's birth.

Dear God,
I bless Your name.
Thank you for loving me.
Thank you for blessing me,
with the hope and fullness of a life in Christ.
I put my heart’s desires in Your hands;
please bring water to the arid land of my soul.
Set Me free from expecting You
to look like I think You should look,
to act like I think You should act.
Let me relax in Your strong love
and trust You to care for me
as You deem best.
Because You love me.
I can trust you.
- Louis Evans, Stones of Rememberance

Baby Bonnet

I crocheted this bonnet for my granddaughter due in January. It is thick yarn so it makes a cute bulky bonnet. Now I need to find a pattern to make booties. I already crocheted a couple of baby afghans for her. It is fun to have a reason to have crocheting projects.

Ice, Baby, Ice

We have been having really bad weather here since Sunday. Our electricity has been on again, off again (mostly off) due to this ice storm. I'm not sure how many trees in our yard we will be able to save. We have branches all over our yard. We stayed with my MIL the last two nights. Just glad we had somewhere warm to go. Electricity is my friend -- the Amish lifestyle is definitely not for me.

The tree to the left is a cedar tree that was like a big Christmas tree close to our house. I'm not sure we are going to be able to save it. The top broke off and several other branches.

The tree on the right is a large tree in our front yard. It has broken several large branches. Sad to see them hurt so badly.

The temperature has remained above freezing today and suppose to stay that way for a few days. We may get snow in a couple days but no more rain. Of course, this is always subject to change.

Surrounding states like Kansas, Iowa and Oklahoma have been hit really hard by ice as well and seem to be worse than Missouri.

My parents winter in Florida and they have had 85 degree weather this week. They are getting a cold spell this weekend and will have 60 degree weather. I don't think they will be getting any ice! Maybe I need a vacation to Florida!

Christmas Music

I'm already enjoying the Christmas music being played on the radio stations. I have many that I enjoy singing along with. Do you have a favorite? "O Holy Night" used to be my favorite when I was growing up. When I was in 3rd grade I sang a solo of "All I Want for Christmas Is My Two Front Teeth" for the school program. I had my two front teeth so I put black gum around them so it looked like I didn't have any!

This is one of my favorite Christmas songs now:

"Mary Did You Know" by Mark Lowry

Mary did you know that your baby boy would one day walk on water?
Mary did you know that your baby boy would save our sons and daughters?
Did you know that your baby boy has come to make you new?
This child that you've delivered, will soon deliver you.

Mary did you know that your baby boy would give sight to a blind man?
Mary did you know that your baby boy would calm a storm with his hand?
Did you know that your baby boy has walked where angels trod?
And when you kiss your little baby, you have kissed the face of God.

Oh Mary did you know
The blind will see, the deaf will hear, the dead will live again.
The lame will leap, the dumb will speak, the praises of the lamb.

Mary did you know that your baby boy is Lord of all creation?
Mary did you know that your baby boy would one day rule the nations?
Did you know that your baby boy is heaven's perfect Lamb?
This sleeping child you're holding is the great I am.

White Christmas

It snowed yesterday! Not too much but enough to stick on the ground. So pretty.

Check out this White Christmas song sang by santa and his elves.

http://badaboo.free.fr/merryxmas.swf

Hot Wings Recipe

This is the recipe I used for Hot Wings for our latest party. They were exceptionally good.

INGREDIENTS:
4 lb. bag party chicken wings (bought at Aldi's already cut up)
1 1/2 bottles Louisiana Hot Sauce (or any hot sauce you have around that you like)
4 pkgs Good Seasons Italian Dressing Mix
1/2 cup lemon juice
1/2 stick butter, melted

PREPARATION:
Spread wings in the bottom of a baking dish. Mix all other ingredients in a bowl and pour over wings. Bake at 400 F for an hour or until meat falls off the bone.

"Tis the Season"

I love Christmas decorations. We have a tree upstairs and downstairs. The upstairs tree currently has baby gifts all around the tree from the showers. The downstairs tree has the family gifts around it and is decorated with pine cones and hunting motif decorations. The downstairs family room is decorated that same way (dogs, moose, deer, elk, etc.).

The kitchen table is decorated with this snowman. He's so cute!

I have a few more decorations to put out and a few more gifts to buy. I haven't baked Christmas goodies yet or wrote my Christmas newsletter. I'm thinking about sending out a newsletter after the New Year instead so that it can include information about the new grand baby. Two birds with one stone sort of thing.

We are possibly getting snow tonight or tomorrow so that should really put me in the Christmas spirit. Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow!

Pseudo Grandchild

My daughter had two baby showers this weekend. She received a lot of precious and fun items. They have so much more these days to help the parents. This picture is a cute stuffed cow for the baby. It was used as the pseudo baby at the shower, so we strapped it into the stroller. My niece bought the stuffed cow and it provided the entertainment for the day!

Countdown: 42 days until due date

Next Time

Well Mizzou didn't pull it off. They lost to the same team twice this season - Oklahoma! This team is actually the only team they have lost to this year. But we are Cotton Bowl bound, playing on New Year's Day. What a great team this year.

I've been super busy lately with preparing for my football party and attending two baby showers that were thrown for my daughter. I will post a picture soon from one of the baby showers and list a few things that she received. There are amazing things now being used by the new moms.

Go MIZZOU!

Missouri football is #1 in the BCS & AP Poll. Go Tigers! What an exciting game on Saturday. KU #2 vs. MU #4. Mizzou pulled out the win over KU. The final score was 36-28. We had a great time watching the game and snacking throughout the game. We had Rotel, chips, spinach and artichoke dip, and Moose Munch from Harry & David. Love that Moose Munch.

Next Saturday Mizzou will be playing Oklahoma for the Big 12 Championship. We lost to Oklahoma earlier in the season so we'll let them have that one and we will win this one! The game is at San Antonio. We need to win this game to stay #1 in the Nation. Chase Daniels, Mizzou's quarterback is awesome, and I know he and the rest of the team will take us to this victory.

What should we have for snacks for the game? Hot chicken wings? Veggie tray? What is your favorite game day foods?

Happy Thanksgiving!

So many things to be thankful for this year. Thank You Lord.

• Healthy family
• My children all home for Thanksgiving
• New baby coming soon and my daughter feeling well.
• Family that know and love the Lord.
• Too many more to name.

Have a HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Tagged Again

My friend, Wonderings and Wanderings has tagged me.

1. What is your occupation? Office Manager
2. Do you like banana sandwiches? No
3. What are you listening to right now? Football game
4. What was the last thing you ate? Triple chocolate cake - I need to share this recipe, it was great.
5. Do you wish on stars? Sometimes for fun if it is a falling star.
6. If you were a crayon, what color would you be? Yellow
7. How is the weather right now? Cool
8. Where are you? Home
9. What is your favorite animal? Dogs
10. How old are you today? 48
11. Favorite drink? Iced tea or margaritas? Ice tea
12. Favorite sport to watch? NCAA basketball
13. Have you ever dyed your hair? no
14. Do you wear contacts or glasses? contacts
15. Pets? 4 Labrador Retrievers
16. Favorite month? Any summer month
17. Favorite food? Anything chocolate
18. What was the last movie you watched? American Gangster
19. Favorite day of the year? Christmas
20. What do you do to vent anger? Talk about what’s bothering me to my husband.
21. What was your favorite toy as a child? Paper dolls and Barbies
22. Hugs or kisses? HUGS
23. Cherry or Blueberry? Neither
24. Do you want your friends to email you back? yes
25. Who is most likely to respond? Have no idea
26. Who is least likely to respond? Again, don’t know
27. Living arrangements? Own my own home with my husband
28. When was the last time you cried? Probably Oprah.
29. What is on the floor of your closet? Shoes
30. Who is the friend you have had the longest? Theresa – 15 years
31. What did you do last night? watched a movie and then had friends over for cake
32. What are you afraid of? losing those I love
33. What bugs you? Someone always trying to make themselves look better by putting you down.
34. Plain, cheese or spicy hamburgers? plain
35. Favorite car? Honda’s
36. Number of keys on your key ring? 9 and I’m not even sure what some of them go to
37. How many years or months at your current job? 3 years
38. Favorite day of the week? Saturday
39. How many STATES/PROVINCES have you lived in? 2 – Missouri and Indiana

I tag: Anyone reading this who would like to be tagged. Go for it!

Stuffing Recipe

This is the turkey stuffing recipe I promised:

Saute the following

4 T butter

2 ribs of celery, thinly chopped

1/2 t dried rubbed poultry seasoning
1/2 small onion, chopped

1/2 c dried cranberries

1 medium apple chopped with peeling (Gala)

Combine this with 2 cups corn bread stuffing after the above mixture has cooled. Place stuffing in cavity of the neck under skin and under the bone of the breast distributing evenly.

This really tasted great and you don't need to worry about having this stuffing inside the bird because there is no eggs or milk in the recipe.

Meme

I have been tagged by He Knows My Name. Here goes nothing!

Link to the person that tagged you, and post the rules on your blog. Share 7 random and/or weird facts about yourself. Tag 7 random people at the end of your post, and include links to their blogs. Let each person know that they’ve been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.

Seven Random Facts:

1. I don't finish the food on my plate. If it is a sandwich, I always leave a corner of the bread.
2. I'm a picky eater. Comes from my parents not making me try things because they were wore out with this from my brothers prior to me.
3. I'm currently studying Daniel in my weekly Bible Study. This study is kicking my behind!
4. I have made a list of "100 things to do before I die". So far I only have 43 on my list. I've got to come up with some more ideas.
5. I've been in every state but two. They are Delaware and Alaska.
6. I have osteoporosis. I'm young for this but it is in my genes. I'm exercising and taking meds to keep this at bay.
7. I have several different pairs of reading glasses to match different outfits. If I have to have them, might as well have some cute ones.

I tag:
1. Wonderings and Wanderings
2. Just Enjoying Life
3. Day by Day
4. Nanny Kim
5. Profbaugh's Blog
6. Schultz Party of Four
7. Something's Gotta Give

Mudding

Aren't these fun? This should keep me well away from the mud and muck. Gardening, feeding the dogs, raking leaves, etc. My daughter bought these for my birthday. So cute! I'm going to have to think of other places to wear them as well.

I cooked a turkey yesterday with a new stuffing recipe. The turkey was on sale and I wanted to try this new recipe, so turkey sandwiches this week. The stuffing turned out really good. I will post the recipe on my next post.

Another Year

Yesterday was my birthday. Not a big year that ends with a 0 or 5, but another year closer. My daughter says my 29 and holding might need to change soon since she is 25!

This is me at about 4. I wish I could remember that photo shoot. That was my first studio picture. I don't think I had another until a Senior in High School.

I'm the baby of the family and the only girl. My brothers think that I was spoiled but I think that my parents just got worn out with my brothers and let some things slide with me! But comparatively speaking to my friends, my parents were very strict.

I look at this picture and think about my new granddaughter that is coming soon. Will she look like this? Will she have wavy hair? Will it be red? Maybe her mom won't cut her bangs as high as mine were cut in this photo!

Beautiful Fall

The leaves are so beautiful right now. I'm not sure how much longer they will have these vibrant colors.The last several days the weather has been perfect.

We worked on the yard today to get the leaves out ... until tomorrow. Our yard is very large with many trees. One good thing is that we don't have close neighbors, so there is no one that expects our yard to be leaf free or worries about our leaves blowing onto their yard.

Leaves by Elsie Brady

How silently they tumble down
And come to rest upon the ground
To lay a carpet, rich and rare,
Beneath the trees without a care,
Content to sleep, their work well done,
Colors gleaming in the sun.
At other times, they wildly fly
Until they nearly reach the sky.
Twisting, turning through the air
Till all the trees stand stark and bare.
Exhausted, drop to earth below
To wait, like children, for the snow.

DVR

We've moved up to new technology. We still use VHS and record TV shows from time to time. Our VHS player has been eating tapes lately so we were in the market for a new one. Before we made that purchase we decided to check with Dish Network to see if DVR might be an option for us. We didn't want to pay a lot of additional dollars, but thought we would see how much this cost and how it worked. We have been long time customers with Dish but haven't recently upgraded.

The new upgrade package would get us a new receiver with DVR that would work on two TVs (we have 3 TVs with satellite hooked up) which would eliminate one satellite charge and the local TV charge that we incur would be included in this package. The new DVR cost us $27 to buy ($127 originally but receiving $100 rebate) and $10 dollars less each month because of one less hookup and local stations included! So we upgraded to a much better system with DVR and will be paying $10 less each month - wow!

They also gave us a new XM radio for our patience in working with them on this deal. It took awhile to figure this all out. I think I would have given them a gift, but hey, if they want to give us something, I won't turn it down! Now we have to figure how much this will cost monthly and how it works.

I'm going to love DVR that is for sure. No worries about being home to watch Greys, Survivor, etc. No more commercials! How sweet is this!

Eagles

I've always enjoyed the "Eagles" but lately I have really fallen in love with their music. You can listen to their new album (Disc 1 and 2) at MSN's Listening Booth: http://music.msn.com/music/ListeningBooth

Baby Boy is 22

Today is my youngest child's birthday! Isn't he the cutest thing ever! Where has the time gone?

Sewing & Cooking

I mentioned in my previous post about finishing up on sewing my new curtains. I found this material at a garage sale for $1 and this is what the end result was. I'm very pleased. This is a bay window in my dining area.

I also mentioned taking a casserole and birthday cake to my son's house for his birthday. He invited over 4 other guys and my daughter and her husband also joined us. We really enjoyed ourselves and enjoyed seeing where he is staying and getting to know some of his friends. He is my youngest child and will turn 22 on Monday. How can that be? He is working to get his Computer Engineering/Computer Science double major completed. We're very proud of both of our kids and how well they are doing and have done academically.

Here is the recipe for my casserole:
King Ranch Casserole

1 chicken, cooked, boned, and cut in bite size pieces

1 pkg of 12 tortillas, cut in fourths

1 onion, chopped fine

1 cup grated cheese (mild Cheddar)

1 can mushroom soup

1 can cream of chicken soup

1 can Ro-Tel tomatoes

1 c chicken broth

Heat soup, Ro-Tel tomatoes and chicken broth together until well mixed. Layer in greased casserole as follows: Tortillas, chicken, onion, cheese, soup mixture. Makes 2 to 3 layers. Bake covered in foil in 350 oven for 1 hour. Take foil off last 10-15 minutes.

To Do

My to do list for this week:

1. Volunteer at the hospital tonight. I volunteer every Tuesday evening in the OB Unit. Helping them anyway that I can. Last week I held a baby for a short time! Yeah!
2. Make a cake - chocolate or red velvet for my son's upcoming birthday.
3. Finish sewing curtains for my kitchen bay window. They are partially up.
4. Continue to crochet baby afghan.
5. Buy ingredients for son's favorite dinner and start preparations. His dad and I are going to bring dinner to him Saturday night for his birthday celebration. He is staying in a different house this year at school and we haven't seen it yet. Hopefully some of his roommates will also be around to help celebrate and eat the casserole and cake.
6. Go out to lunch with my parents tomorrow. They are dropping into town for a doctor's appointment.
7. Think about what wall in the living room I want to put my Currier & Ives plates I just bought. (I'll try to take a picture and post after they are up)
8. Watch the "View" that I recorded today.

That's all I can think of right now for this week. I guess that is plenty.

Grey's

Loved "Grey's Anatomy" last night. I laughed and cried. Every time I see Herman, the old intern, I think of FDR. He has played the President in a past movie and that has stuck with me! Izzie or Callie? Maybe they will both dump George! The Chief needed to tell his wife to deal - I understand her sadness, but she was just mean to him about not doing what she wanted.

I also watched "Survivor". Thursday night seems to be my night for TV. Interesting twist last night. Who's your favorite survivor? I think mine is Frosti at this point. Good kid and seems to know how to play the game both physically and mentally.

Authors

I have been reading some really good books lately as well as getting to see authors in person. Last night I heard Harold Ivan Smith in person. He has written many books about grief. As we get ready to enter the Holiday Season, this book can be a very good gift for a friend/family in need. He is a really great speaker and has many interesting stories that he tells.

Tomorrow I am going to a meeting that Jeannette Walls will be speaking and talking about her book, "The Glass Castle". This is a great memoir and I am looking forward to seeing her and hearing what she has to say.

At the end of the month, I will be attending a prayer conference led by Jennifer Kennedy Dean. She has several books on prayer and is an energetic and knowledgeable speaker. Connect to her website here.

Ocean

I've never put a video on my blog before, but this is my try at it. I love this sound.

North Carolina

We're back from our vacation/conference in North Carolina. We had a great time and enjoyed all the places we visited (Biltmore Estates, Charlotte, Duke University, North Carolina University, state capitol, Kitty Hawk, OBX). We had wonderful weather and I had plenty of time to shop while my hubby was at his conference. I found 2 great shopping malls in Charlotte. One had Crate and Barrel, Pottery Barn, Macy's, Neiman Marcus, Gap Kids, JCrew and other great stores that I enjoyed strolling through and finding some great buys. The other was a outlet mall with Haggar, Old Navy, American Eagle, Naturalizer, Eddie Bauer, Bass, etc. I did nearly shop until I dropped!

This is a view of Asheville in the evening. After we flew into Charlotte, we drove straight into Asheville and hurried to drive part of the Blue Ridge Parkway.

The next day we visited the Biltmore Estates. Click on this link to read more about the Biltmore Estates. We toured the inside by an audio tour and learned about this historic home.

After my hubby's conference we drove to the Outer Banks (OBX). We visited Kitty Hawk first (picture on right) and then enjoyed the beach.

We drove to Hatteras Village and saw the tallest lighthouse and then took a ferry to the Ocracoke area where we took another ferry to Swan Quarters. During the vacation we also drove through Duke University, North Carolina University, North Carolina State University and the State Capitol in Raleigh.

We packed in a lot of siteseeing in a short period of time. Whew! I'd love to go back to the OBX and spend a week walking the beach looking for sea glass and shells, listening to the waves hit against the beach, and reading as the sun goes down.

I did read a couple of books while on vacation. Both very good but totally different. The first one was "The Glass Castle" by Jeannette Walls (non-fiction account of her life growing up with dysfunctional parents) and "Cordina's Royal Family" by Nora Roberts (fiction romance).

A rather long post, but wanted to share my adventures. Look forward to checking everyone's blogs and catching up with what is going on in blogworld.

Anticipation

I am looking forward to our upcoming vacation in North Carolina. Part of our vacation will be visiting Biltmore Estates, Charlotte, state capitol at Raleigh (I collect capitol pictures), the Outer Banks, and visiting friends we haven't seen in a long while. We're making our reservations for hotels and rental car, I'm packing and making lists on what to pack -- so my excitement is building up.

Anyone have any suggestions on what we should make sure we don't miss? Any great places to see in the Outer Banks? I'm looking forward to seeing the beach, sticking my toes in the sand and water, and taking many, many pictures of the ocean, lighthouses, the Biltmore, the Capitol, and anything else that comes into view!

Daniel

I've begun a new Bible Study on the book of Daniel. We meet every Monday evening for a little over an hour. I've been with the study group before and I always enjoy the study time and the insights from each woman. This study is from the "Community Bible Study" series. A few things that I jotted down in my notes from our first lesson from Daniel 1:1-2:23:

• God's in control.


• God's love isn't based on how many good or bad choices you make.


• Don't panic, pray.


• Panic confirms hopelessness, prayer confirms hope in God.

Thank you Lord for directing me back to this study group and for your continued love.

Golden Books

Sorry I have not posted lately. I have had a killer cold. First a head cold and now a chest cold. Seemed to start out as an allergy and then got continuously worse. I think I'm on the road to recovery today and hopefully the yuks are behind me.

I have been picking up Little Golden Books lately at garage sales and antique stores. It has been fun looking for the older ones for my collection. My oldest book was published in 1948. These stories never get old. Great illustrations too.

If I Had My Child to Raise Over Again

As I read about many of the bloggers who are sending their children to school or preparing to be new mothers and as I think about the days gone by with my own children and prepare for a new grandbaby, these words ring true.

From “If I Had My Child To Raise Over Again”

If I had my child to raise all over again,

I’d build self-esteem first, and the house later.

I’d finger-paint more, and point the finger less.

I would do less correcting and more connecting.

I’d take my eyes off my watch, and watch with my eyes.

I’d take more hikes and fly more kites.

I’d stop playing serious, and seriously play.

I would run through more fields and gaze at more stars.

I’d do more hugging and less tugging.

~Diane Loomans

Charlotte - Here We Come

We are taking a trip at the end of September to Charlotte, North Carolina. Do any readers live in Charlotte or have vacationed there? What should we make sure we see and do? Any and all help would be appreciated. My hubby is attending a conference and I'm tagging along. I'm excited about the time away.

Back Home

We are back from our Labor Day travels. Antiquing, golfing, watching baseball, riding on a riverboat, visiting relatives, viewing museums, and feeding trout. Here are a few pictures from the weekend.

This is a picnic basket that I bought from the antique mall. It has a pie shelf inside. I have several picnic baskets but my first one with a pie shelf.

My hubby and I went golfing after antiquing at a 9-hole golf course. He golfed and I drove the cart! It was a fun afternoon and beautiful area.

The next day we went to a Cardinals game. They beat Cincinnatti 3-2. Great game! But boy was it warm in our seats. We never got any shade. I got a little bit of a sunburn on my neck and shoulders. First one of the season.

Prior to the game we rode a riverboat on the Mississippi River. I got a really nice picture of the arch.

On Monday, we visited with my parents and had lunch with our son and then went to a nearby spring to feed the trout. Some very beautiful scenery.

Overall - great weekend and very relaxing. Hope you had the same.

Labor Day Fun

Have you made your plans for this weekend? It might be your last outing before school starts or it might be your last beach time for the summer. Midwest Nest and hubby aren't near an ocean, so we are going antiquing and golfing. We are headed to a town we haven't been before but hear it is really quaint and beautiful.

I love to go antiquing even if I don't buy anything. Just looking for items I remember in my childhood and seeing what people have to sell is fun for me. I currently am looking for a squeaky toy that my grandmother had around her house. I saw it once at a store in Idaho and I should have bought it then. It is not easy to find. I did see one on e-bay though, so if I don't find one this weekend, I may see if I can purchase that one. I also am looking for this bank that we had in church that when we had a birthday or anniversary, we would put money in for the missionaries. I don't have a picture of that one. It is a tin bank that is blue and has pictures of children on it. It will be fun looking.

On Sunday, we are going to a Cardinals ballgame at Busch Stadium. It is getting to crunch time and hopefully will be a really fun game. Hopefully not too hot! After that, on to spend a night with my parents and a day of picnicking and fishing.

I still plan to put up some pictures from last weekend and hopefully will have some good ones from this weekend to show as well.

Have a great Labor Day Weekend!

Private

Oh, I'm sad :( Grosgrain Garage has gone private. I was just telling a friend about how you did your counter tops and was giving her a link to your website giving your instructions and then we couldn't enter. If you check out this blog, could you give me an invite or send along those instructions? Thanks -- I will miss your blog reading.

Perfect Weekend

What a wonderful weekend we had! Beautiful weather, beautiful surroundings and wonderful friends and family to enjoy it with. We did go shopping while the guys were golfing. That always works out great!

My daughter and I spent time in the "Motherhood" store. She found several tops and a sweater to wear this fall and winter. This is a new experience for us, not the shopping part, but the maternity shopping part! She looked adorable in her new tops! They had a pretend tummy you can also put on to see if your shirts would fit further into your pregnancy. She put that on and it was amazing to think about her getting that big.

I also found a few buys for myself. These shoes were bought at "Nine West". They have really cute shoes and purses. I also found some really cute reading glasses (hate to admit it, but I do need them). The cuter, the better!

I have more stories about our fun times at the lake and more pictures that I will post soon.

Shopping Weekend

Shopping, shopping we will go. This weekend we are headed to a cabin on the lake for our daughter's birthday. Her husband planned and coordinated the event and includes all of our family and his. We will be doing a lot of eating, playing games, boating, golfing and shopping. There is an outlet mall nearby that includes J Crew, Polo, Coldwater Creek, Gap, and also maternity stores that we'll be visiting for my daughter.

I really love this J Crew shirt in this picture. Doubt it will be at the outlet, but maybe I'll find something else that I really love! Perfectly Pink also had this picture on her blog -- I agree -- great shirt.

Jump or Not

My son decided to check off one item from his list of things to do. Jump out of an airplane! This one is definitely not on my list. I asked him how did he take that first step out of the plane and he said he didn't, he was pushed! He did tandem, so someone was strapped onto his back. He said he wasn't sure he would do that again, but he was glad he did it. He had mentioned that this was on his list but didn't tell me when he was doing it. I'm thankful for that. I would not want to know -- he called me right after and was still pretty excited. I'm afraid to ask what else is on his list but I am glad he has a list. I think it is great to think about things that you want to accomplish and not wait until you are over 40 to start thinking about it.

Peace

I am currently in the middle of a book study where we are reading "Blue Like Jazz" from Donald Miller. It was wrote in 2003, so I'm not on the cutting edge! Donald Miller writes "nonreligious thoughts on Christian Spirituality". I'm halfway through the book and it is very interesting and thought provoking. It is about loving Jesus through loving people. An excerpt from the book that I liked is, "I liked the idea of loving people just to love them, not to get them to come to church....we started praying every week that God would teach us to live missional lives, to notice people who needed to be loved."

On another topic, it is very, very hot in the midwest. We are having temperatures over 100 degrees and it is always very humid - so it feels even hotter. This picture I took over this past weekend helps me to think cool. If we could just get some rain, maybe then it would cool down.

This picture was taken at the State Fair. I really wish I had this falls in my backyard! Very peaceful and cool.

Garden Bounty